Electronic device cabinet and electronic device

ABSTRACT

An electronic device cabinet and an electronic device wherein the rotation of the cover upon opening can be slowed with a simple hinge mechanism. A rotating member provided with a protruding piece is provided on said cover. Said rotating member comes into sliding contact with contact parts provided on an upper case main body and slides together with the rotation of cover. The rotation of cover is slowed by having protruding piece come into contact with contact parts, and the rotation of cover is stopped by said protruding piece engaging a receiving member disposed between said contact parts.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

This invention concerns an electronic device cabinet, and an electronicdevice, that has a cover whose end is attached rotatably to the cabinetmain body, and in particular this invention concerns a hinge mechanismfor slowing the rotation of said cover during opening with respect tosaid cabinet main body.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Heretofore known as cabinets for entertainment devices that employ a CD,DVD, CD-ROM, DVD-ROM, or other optical disk are ones that have a coverwhose end is attached rotatably to the cabinet main body and in whichthis cover is opened and closed using elastic force. Such a cabinet isconstituted in such a way that the cover, of circular shape to fit theshape of the optical disk, is attached rotatably to the inner side ofthe cabinet main body by a hinge or other mechanism, a spring or otherimpelling means is provided inside the cabinet main body, and releasingthe elastic force of the spring opens the cover, and provided on thefront of the cabinet main body is an engaging member that advances andretracts with respect to the cover, and the cover can be closed byengaging the end of the cover with this engaging member.

In such an entertainment device, when the engagement by the engagingmember is released, the cover opens by the elastic force of the spring,and the catching member inside it is exposed, thus allowing an opticaldisk to be mounted on this catching member. After mounting, by closingthe cover, once again engaging the end of the cover with the engagingmember, accommodating the optical disk, and turning on the power, etc.,one can play back the content recorded on the optical disk and enjoy agame or music, etc. And since it suffices to be able to mount an opticaldisk, it is sufficient that the cover be able to rotate in a range sothat the cover will be roughly perpendicular to the cabinet main body,and for this purpose a stopper to keep the rotation of the cover towithin the prescribed angle is provided on the hinge mechanism part.

However, in an electronic device cabinet in which the cover is openedand closed using such elastic force, if the elastic force of the springis too strong, the cover will forcefully strike the stopper, and thereaction will cause the cover to spring back, making it difficult touse. And if the elastic force of the spring is too small, the cover willrotate slowly, likewise making it difficult to use.

Methods are conceivable in which a link mechanism, etc. is used to slowdown the rotation of the lid near the rotation stopping position, butthe internal structure will be more complicated, making this undesirableas the structure of an electronic device that requires light weight andsmall size.

OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION

It is an object of the present invention, therefore, to provide anelectronic device cabinet and an electronic device that canappropriately slow down the rotation of the cover with a simplemechanism and are easy to use.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will become clear uponreview of the following detailed description in conjunction with theappended drawings.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

An electronic device cabinet has a cover whose end is attached rotatablyto a cabinet main body and is opened and closed using elastic force.Provided on said cover is a sliding part that comes into contact withsaid cabinet main body on at least part of the rotation range of saidcover and slides together with the rotation of the cover. The rotationof the cover due to the elastic force of the spring is appropriatelyslowed down by having the sliding part come into contact with thecabinet main body, preventing it from forcefully striking a stopper orother rotation stopping member, and preventing the cover from springingback.

Conceivable as an electronic device for which the electronic devicecabinet of this invention can be used is an entertainment device such asa CD or DVD player or a game device, and using this invention on theseelectronic devices can simplify the structure of the cabinet, which isdesirable in making electronic devices smaller and lighter, and inreducing their cost.

It is preferable that said sliding part be constituted as a protrudingpiece that is formed on the inner side of the cover, and that saidcontact parts are constituted in a groove shape that clasps thisprotruding piece and comes into contact with both sides of saidprotruding piece. By constituting the sliding part and contact parts inthis way, a large contact area of the sliding part and contact parts canbe ensured, thereby greatly reducing the rotation operation of the coverin a small rotation range. It is also preferably that the contact partsare provided with sloping surfaces for guiding the protruding piece intocontact with the contact parts.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a living room showing an electronicdevice of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of an entertainment device of theinvention.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the entertainment device of FIG. 2 withits cover open.

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of the entertainment device with itscover closed.

FIG. 5 is an enlarged perspective view showing the hinge mechanism ofthe present invention.

FIG. 6 is a rough cross-sectional view showing an entertainment devicewith its cover open in said embodiment.

FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view showing the relationship between thesquare-C-shaped member and the protruding piece of the invention withthe cover open.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

The following detailed description is of the best mode or modes of theinvention presently contemplated. Such description is not intended to beunderstood in a limiting sense, but to be an example of the inventionpresented solely for illustration thereof, and by reference to which inconnection with the following description and the accompanying drawingsone skilled in the art may be advised of the advantages and constructionof the invention. In the various views of the drawings, like referencecharacters designate like or similar parts.

In the following we describe, with reference to the drawings, anembodiment of this invention.

FIG. 1 shows part of a living room 100 in which is set up a televisionreceiver 3, which outputs images and sound, etc., an entertainmentdevice 1, which is an electronic device that is connected to thistelevision receiver 3, and a controller 2, which is an operation devicethat sends instructions to entertainment device 1. Entertainment device1 for example reads a game program, etc. recorded on an optical disk,etc. and executes it according to instructions from controller 2operated by the user (game player).

As shown in FIG. 2, entertainment device 1 comprises a device main body(not pictured), which has electronic parts, etc., and entertainmentdevice cabinet (hereafter called “cabinet”) 10, which has an upper case11 and a lower case 12 and is preferably formed in a flat square shape.Upper case 11, which covers the device main body from above, has a flatroughly circular cover 13 provided in the middle and an upper case mainbody 14 provided around this cover 13.

On the left side of cover 13 is power button 15, which is operated whenturning the power to the device on or off, and on the right side ofcover 13 is open-close button 16, into which is built an engagingmember, not pictured, that advances and retracts with respect to cover13 for opening and closing said cover 13. Two slots 17 are exposed onthe side of cabinet 10, each having a memory card insertion part 18,which is positioned toward the top of the slots 17, and a controllerconnection part 19, which is positioned toward the bottom of the slots17. Memory card insertion part 18 is for inserting a memory card orother external auxiliary memory device, and its insertion hole 18A ispreferably formed in rectangular shape, with its longer direction beinghorizontal. Provided on this memory card insertion part 18 is jack orcover 18B for protecting the connection terminals provided inside it.Controller connection part 19 is an input-output terminal for the inputand output of signals; to which is connected the connection terminal(not shown) formed on the end of a controller cable that extends fromcontroller 2 (FIG. 1). Insertion hole 19A is preferably formed inrectangular shape, with its longer direction being horizontal, and it isshaped so that its corners at the bottom are rounder than its corners atthe top. Shaping insertion hole 19A in this way prevents the connectionterminal of controller 2 from being connected in the wrong orientation.Also, because the shape of insertion hole 19A is made with a structurethat is different from the shape of insertion hole 18A of memory cardinsertion part 18, there is no danger of mistakenly inserting anexternal auxiliary memory device into insertion hole 19A of controllerconnection part 19, and vice versa. Having two of these controllerconnection parts 19 allows two controllers 2 to be connected, allowingtwo users to play competitive games, etc. The results of operating withcontrollers 2 connected to controller connection parts 19 are recordedon a memory card as an external auxiliary memory device inserted intomemory card insertion part 18 positioned above each.

Positioned on the side opposite the side on which these slots 17 arepositioned as shown in FIG. 2, are a power connector (not shown), towhich an AC adapter is connected and which is a power supply terminalsupplying electric power from an external power source (not shown) tothe device main body, and video and audio output terminals (not shown)for outputting to television receiver 3 video signals, audio signals,and various other signals recorded on an optical disk (not shown).

As shown in FIG. 3, cover 13 comprises a roughly flat round diskcovering part 21, which covers disk mounting part 20 onto which opticaldisk 4 is mounted, and attachment part 22, which extends from part ofthe circumferential edge of this disk covering part 21 and whose end isrotatably attached to upper case main body 14. Rod shaped members 21Aare provided on the circumferential edge of disk covering part 21, andengage an open-closed detection switch (not shown) that detects whethercover 13 is open or closed. Engagement piece 21B, also provided on thecircumferential edge of disk covering part 21 engages and engagingmember (not shown) for maintaining the cover 13 in a closed position.

As shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, on both ends along the longitudinal directionof the end of attachment part 22 is a rotation part 23 that hasinsertion hole 24A pierced by pin 31 formed on upper case main body 14and can rotate about this pin 31 as its central axis. That is,attachment part 22 and upper case main body 14 are connected by a hingemechanism consisting of pin 31 and rotation part 23, by which cover 13is free to rotate with respect to upper case main body 14. Rotation part23 comprises a cylinder-shaped rotation main body 24, in which insertionhole 24A is formed, and a square-shaped protruding piece 25, whichprotrudes from part of the side of this rotation main body 24 towardlower case 12. As indicated by arrows in FIGS. 4 and 5, when cover 13 isopened, rotation part 23 rotates about pin 31.

Provided on the rotation direction side of rotation part 23 of uppercase main body 14 is a square-“C”-shaped member 32, which in the fronthas the shape of a “C” having right-angle corners and lying with its twoends upward. More precisely, square-“C”-shaped member 32 causes theprotruding piece 25 that rotates as the cover 13 rotates to slide, andstops the rotation of the protruding piece 25 in the rotation stoppingposition of said cover 13; and has integrally formed therewith a pair ofcontact parts 33 and a receiving part 34 disposed between said contactparts 33; and is provided near the rotation stopping position where therotation of rotation part 23 is stopped when cover 13 is opened.

As shown in FIGS. 6 and 7, contact parts 33 are formed in a groove shapeso as to clamp between them protruding piece 25, which rotates togetherwith the rotation of the cover 13. Protruding piece contacts receivingpart 34 in between contact parts 33 in order to stop the rotation ofcover 13 at the prescribed angle. That is, the angle and position ofreceiving part 34 where protruding piece 25 comes into contact with itis determined according to the rotation stopping position of the cover.Also, sloping surfaces 33A that guide protruding piece 25 are formed atthe top of the facing sides of contact parts 33 so as to make it easierfor protruding piece 25 of rotation piece 23 to enter between contactparts 33 when cover 13 is opened. Therefore protruding piece 25 ofrotation part 23 is a sliding part that comes into contact with contactparts 33 near the rotation stopping position of cover 13 and slides assaid cover 13 rotates, and receiving part 34 is a rotation stopping partthat stops the rotation of cover 13 at a prescribed angle. Here,provided inside upper case main body 14 is spring 35 (see FIG. 3), whichis an impelling means, one end of which comes into contact with cover13. Also, in this embodiment we have described the hinge mechanism ofone end of attachment part 22, but the hinge mechanism on its other endhas the same composition, so its description has been omitted here.

The description of the operation of cover 13 of such an entertainmentdevice 1 is as follows.

First, if cover 13 (FIG. 6) is to be opened, when open/close button 16is pressed, then as shown in FIGS. 3 and 7, the engagement by theengaging member (not shown) is released, and cover 13 rotates open bythe elastic force of spring 35 and the rotation of rotation part 23until protruding piece 25 is sandwiched between contact parts 33. Whenprotruding piece 25 comes into contact with contact parts 33 near therotation stopping position, i.e. prior to contact with receiving part34, it is slowed down by the sliding of protruding piece 25 betweencontact parts 33. Then, while slowing down, it stops when it comes tothe rotation stopping position, that is, when protruding piece 25 comesinto contact with receiving part 34. On the other hand, cover 13 can beclosed, by pressing the upper surface of said cover 13 and engagingengagement piece 21B with the engaging member (not shown).

Thus, because protruding piece 25, which comes into contact with contactparts 33 of upper case main body 14, is provided on cover 13, therotation of cover 13 due to the elastic force of spring 35 can beappropriately slowed down by protruding piece 25 coming into contactwith contact parts 33. This prevents cover 13 from forcefully striking astopper or other rotation stopping member, thereby preventing thespring-back of cover 13 due to reaction and allowing one to make aneasy-to-use entertainment device 1.

In addition, because protruding piece 25 comes into contact with contactparts 33 near the rotation stopping position when cover 13 opens, therotation of cover 13 is slowed down near the rotation stopping position,which makes it possible to prevent the spring-back of cover 13 whilemaintaining a fast rotation operation, further improving the ease ofuse.

In addition, because contact parts 33, which come into contact withprotruding piece 25, and receiving part 34, which stops the rotation ofcover 13, are integrally constructed, the number of parts that protrudeon the inside surface of upper case main body 14 can be minimized, andentertainment device 1 can be made lighter.

In addition, a large contact surface is formed between protruding piece25 and contact parts 33, and the rotation operation of cover 13 can begreatly slowed down in a small rotation range.

In addition, because sloping surfaces 33A, which guide protruding piece25, are formed at the top of the facing sides of contact parts 33 thatmake up the top part of the groove, protruding piece 25 can beappropriately guided into the groove between contact parts 33 and aslowdown due to sliding can be assured.

This invention is not limited to the aforesaid embodiment but caninclude alternatives and modifications including, but not limited to,the following.

For example, while in the above embodiment sloping surfaces are formedon the contact parts, such sloping surfaces may be eliminated if, forexample, the shape is such that the protruding piece securely enters thegroove between the contact parts. In addition, while in the abovedescribed embodiment both sides of the protruding piece are made to comeinto contact with the contact parts, it may be sufficient if only oneside of the protruding piece comes into contact with a contact part, inwhich case a single contact part might suffice. With such an embodiment,and to ensure left-right sliding balance, it is desirable to provide twoprotruding pieces on the cover, constituted so that they slide along theinner surface in two respective locations.

In addition, while the square-“C”-shaped member is described as beingformed integrally, the contact parts and receiving part may be formedseparately and assembled together when the entertainment device ismanufactured.

Also, in the above embodiment, the contact parts are provided near therotation stopping position, but it is not limited to this. For example,the rotation starting position and rotation stopping position of theprotruding piece may be provided in an approximately intermediate part.In addition, the rotation stopping part of this invention is not limitedto a receiving part; as long as it stops the rotation of the cover, itsshape and composition may be determined to suit the implementation.Also, the sliding part of this invention is not limited to a protrudingpiece; in short, as long as it comes into contact with the upper casemain body in at least part of the rotation range of the cover and slidestogether with the rotation of the cover, its shape and composition maybe determined to suit the implementation. In addition, in the aboveembodiment, a hinge mechanism is provided on both ends of the attachmentpart, but it is not limited to this; it may be provided on one end only.

While the present invention has been described at some length and withsome particularity with respect to the several described embodiments, itis not intended that it should be limited to any such particulars orembodiments or any particular embodiment, but it is to be construed withreferences to the appended claims so as to provide the broadest possibleinterpretation of such claims in view of the prior art and, therefore,to effectively encompass the intended scope of the invention.

I claim:
 1. An electronic device comprising: a) a cabinet having acabinet main body and a cover, b) said cover being rotatably attached tosaid cabinet main body and positionable between an open position and aclosed position and being biased toward the open position, and c) asliding part provided on said cover that is movable with said cover, d)wherein said sliding part comes into contact with said cabinet main bodyon at least part of the rotatable position of said cover, and e) whereinsaid cabinet main body further comprises contact parts integrally formedwith said cabinet main body, said contact parts being adapted forcontact with said sliding part, and wherein said cabinet main bodyfurther comprises a rotation stopping part that stops the rotation ofsaid cover about said cabinet main body.
 2. An electronic device inaccordance with claim 1, wherein said sliding part further comprises aprotruding piece formed on the inner side of the cover, and said contactparts are constructed in a groove shape to clasp said protruding piecetherebetween.
 3. An electronic device in accordance with claim 2,further comprising sloping surfaces formed on the upper part of saidcontact parts that guide said protruding piece into engagement with saidcontact parts.
 4. An electronic device comprising: a) a cabinet having acabinet main body and a cover, b) said cover being rotatably attached tosaid cabinet main body and positionable between an open position and aclosed position and being biased toward the open position, and c) asliding part provided on said cover that is movable with said cover, d)wherein said sliding part comes into contact with said cabinet main bodyon at least part of the rotatable position of said cover, e) wherein aportion of said sliding part comes into contact with said cabinet mainbody only when said cover nears the open position, and f) wherein saidcabinet main body further comprises contact parts integrally formed withsaid cabinet main body, said contact parts being adapted for contactwith said sliding part, and wherein said cabinet main body furthercomprises a rotation stopping part that stops the rotation of said coverabout said cabinet main body.
 5. An electronic device in accordance withclaim 4, wherein said portion of said sliding part further comprises aprotruding piece, and said contact parts are constructed in a grooveshape to clasp said protruding piece therebetween.
 6. An electronicdevice in accordance with claim 5, further comprising sloping surfacesformed on the upper part of said contact parts that guide saidprotruding piece into engagement with said contact parts.
 7. Anelectronic device cabinet comprising: a) a cabinet main body and acover, b) said cover being rotatably attached to said cabinet main bodyand positionable between an open position and a closed position andbeing biased toward the open position, and c) a sliding part provided onsaid cover that is movable with said cover, said sliding part furthercomprising a pair of side surfaces and a bottom surface, d) wherein saidsliding part comes into contact with said cabinet main body on at leastpart of the rotatable position or range of said cover, and e) whereinsaid cabinet main body further comprises contact parts integrally formedwith said cabinet main body, said contact parts being adapted forcontact with said sliding part, and wherein said cabinet main bodyfurther comprises a rotation stopping part that stops the rotation ofsaid cover about said cabinet main body.
 8. An electronic device cabinetin accordance with claim 7, wherein said sliding part further comprisesa protruding piece extending outwardly therefrom, and said contact partsare constructed in a groove shape to clasp said protruding piecetherebetween.
 9. An electronic device cabinet in accordance with claim8, further comprising sloping surfaces formed on the upper part of saidcontact parts that guide said protruding piece into engagement with saidcontact parts.
 10. An electronic device cabinet in accordance with claim7, said contact parts being adapted for continuous contact with saidside surfaces of said sliding part.
 11. An electronic device inaccordance with claim 10, wherein said bottom surface of said slidingpart further comprises a protruding piece, and said contact parts areconstructed in a groove shape to clasp said protruding piecetherebetween.
 12. An electronic device in accordance with claim 11,further comprising sloping surfaces formed on the upper part of saidcontact parts that guide said protruding piece into engagement with saidcontact parts.